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The condom was conceived several thousand years ago, when ancient Egyptians are believed to have used a linen sheath to protect themselves from the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs).[1] Since that time, condoms have been in use in one form or another throughout history, although the material and technology with which they have been manufactured has changed dramatically.

The fifteenth century saw the first published account of condom use thanks in large part to a syphilis epidemic spreading across Europe. At that time, a man by the name Gabrielle Fallopius claimed to have invented a similar sheath to the ones Egyptians had been using in order to protect men from the disease, which lead to the widespread belief that the condom was a European invention.[2]

In the 1800s, near the beginning of the industrial revolution, condoms began to be manufactured using the novel material known as rubber for the first time. As mass production of condoms rose and they became more affordable, condom use as a method of contraception as well as disease prevention rose dramatically. However, in 1873, the United States legislature introduced a law known as the Comstock Law, which made condom advertisements illegal and required the United States postal service to confiscate condoms sent through the mail.[3]

In 1919, Frederick Killian revised the condom manufacturing process by introducing latex as a new material, which aged slower than vulcanised rubber, were odorless, and could be made thinner and thus more pleasurable for the wearer.[4]